Paramount Pictures via Everett Collection
The sullen critical reaction to the latest Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie is unsurprising, but the box office intake for the Michael Bay-produced feature's opening weekend might warrant a double take: early numbers indicate that Turtles took in $65 million, a sum that allowed the flick to trounce expectations by 20 grand, top Guardians of the Galaxy by a similar figure, and — perhaps worst of all — spawn a sequel. Via the Los Angeles Times, Paramount is moving forward with a second Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles movie, already scheduled for 2016.
Considering the fact that Turtles was hardly the worst thing we've seen this year (perhaps not even the worst thing to come from Michael Bay, in fact), we don't want to write off the newly developing follow-up just yet. There might be a way to save this '16-bound film, but it'll entail a few major changes to the process that brought us this year's Turtle movie:
1) Clean up the Turtles' lookThe choice to make the Turtle brothers look darker, grittier, and more "real" this time around is a particularly confusing one considering how broad and silly the film goes with its material. The grotesque appearance of the foursome doesn't mesh whatsoever with the tone of the movie, nor is it at all pleasant to look at. A dramatic redesign might not be necessary, but something smoother, cleaner, and altogether sillier would benefit future audiences. Splinter, on the other hand, could use a complete makeover.
2) Replace Jonathan Liebesman as directorLiebesman proved with Turtles that he is still developing his directorial skill set. A filmmaker with an established understanding of how to harmonize action and comedy would serve the second feature well.
3) More time on the shelled foursomeWith so much ground to cover in regards to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles' nonsensical plot, too much time was spent away from the Turtles themselves. Although they might not be the work of comic genius, they were more or less endearing in the grand scheme of things. More Turtles, less everything else. Oh, and for that matter...
4) Simply, simplify, simplify!Whoever it was that demanded this movie's premise to be more tiered and complicated than A Most Wanted Man does not understand the appeal of the Ninja Turtles. Keep things light, simple, and straightforward. We don't need several dozen conspiracies, puppet regimes, and plot twists. Oh, and for THAT matter...
5) Enough with that one sci-fi contrivance that seems to be popping up in every big movie this year.If you don't know what I'm talking about (I'm being coy for fear of spoilers) check out Mike Ryan's excellent diatribe against the phenomenon.
6) Oust Will Arnett's characterWill Arnett is an adroit comic actor, but his character in Turtles is about as pointless as a pastel bandit mask on the face of a gigantic reptilian vigilante. If April O'Neil had her own car, Arnett's character's contribution would have been instantly nullified.
7) Encourage an actual performance out of Megan FoxWhile Turtles can get rid of Arnett without missing a beat, it's unlikely that Fox can be dismissed so easily (although there Bay-universe is precedent for such banishment). If we're stuck with her, then let's at least try to get her invested in the story and character this time; all she does in this latest Turtles entry is babble flat exposition and grimace in ambiguous dread.
8) Make Michelangelo less creepyAn innocent crush on April O'Neil would be fine, but Michelangelo's character was full on sexual deviant with his obsessive come-ons and offhand erection jokes.
9) Stop destroying New York CityWe've seen it. We're sick of it. It weighs hard on those of us who actually live here. Enough.
10) Krang!His big screen debut is long overdue.
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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles have slashed their way to the top of the North American box office with a strong $65 million (£38.2 million) debut. Megan Fox's new crime-fighting action reboot, directed by Jonathan Liebesman and produced by Michael Bay, topples Guardians of the Galaxy from number one; the superhero movie slips to two with $41.5 million (£24.4 million) in its second weekend on release.
Disaster film Into the Storm enters the chart at three with $18 million (£10.6 million), with Helen Mirren's The Hundred-Foot Journey and dance sequel Step Up All In debuting at fourth and fifth place, respectively.

Is it turtle time yet?
The latest adventure for the heroes in a half-shell is still a couple months away, but the newest trailer for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles gives us a somewhat new preview of Jonathan Liebesman and Michael Bay's burly, live-action update of the turtles. While we've seen most of the footage here before, we do finally get a glimpse at all four turtles in their element: Raphael is sporting a trademark scowl, Leonardo is looking stoic, Michelangelo is making jokes (and seriously freaking out April O'Neil), and Donatello is buried knee deep in his own gadgetry. Now that we've gotten a look at the foursome, the time has come to ask the all-important question: Which is your favorite Ninja Turtle?
It's a question that has broken friendships, forged new ones, and charged schoolyard debates for the past two decades. Your favorite turtle speaks volumes about the kind of person you are. We've decided to break out the old Psychology 101 textbook we didn't manage to sell back in college, and analyze your choice of your favorite Ninja Turtle.
LEONARDO
Leo is the leader of the group and a devout student of martial arts.If you're favorite Turtle is Leonardo: You’re the alpha male. You’re a natural born leader, and you walk around with so much swaggering confidence and charisma, people glom onto you like thirsty leeches. You love to swoop in and solve petty squabbles, and you love the fact that people look up to you. Whatever interest you take, you feel the need to dominate in it. You’re a high school quarterback, the captain of the soccer team, the captain of the basketball team, the captain of the water polo team, hell, you even found a way to become the captain of the local AA group and you’re not even an alcoholic. You almost exclusively wear varsity jackets and you rotate them throughout the week on a very specific schedule. You often go out looking for old ladies to help cross the street. If no old ladies want to cross the street, you make them. You are almost literally the best at everything.Currently on your bookshelf: How to Win Friends and Influence People.Currently on your DVR: Law and Order: SVU. You get a contact high from all the justice. Watching Elliot Stabler hospitalize sexual abusers makes you as giddy as a schoolgirl. Justice feels so good.
RAPHAEL
Raph is the brawn of the group. He's aggressive and pugnacious. Two traits that often get him into trouble.If your favorite Turtle is Raphael: You're in serious need of anger management. You sometimes worry that you’ve forgotten how to smile. You've never encountered a fight you couldn't start...and finish. You love not only having anger, but having righteous anger, and any opportunity to really tell someone off should be cherished like a newborn baby, and you definitely hate babies. You want to gut your coworker that's been sniffling every five seconds for the past three hours. You get way too angry at the latest comic book film news well before it's time to form an actual opinion. You’ve already stopped reading because some stupid Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles personality guide isn’t gonna tell you how to live your life. The nerve of them. "The nerve of them" is also one of your most commonly used phrases. Deep down though, under all that hate and animosity, you really just want to be loved.Currently on your bookshelf: Tao of Jeet Kun Do by Bruce Lee.Currently on your DVR: Sons of Anarchy. Watching all those bikers rain blows upon everyone and thing they cross paths with is like meditation to you.
Nickelodeon Movies/Paramount Pictures
MICHELANGELO
Mikey is the fun-loving, nunchakus-weilding, pizza-scarfing prankster of ther group. If your favorite Ninja Turtle is Michaelangelo: You’re the easy-going jokester of your group. Matthew McConaughey from Dazed and Confused is your patron saint of cool. You laze around to surf rock and wonder why puka shell necklaces aren’t a thing anymore... but you don’t worry about trends, because that’s just not your bag, man. You break out in hives if you’re away from the beach for too long. You also an avid fan of pizza. Like a really big fan. Like seriously, get some help, you have a debilitating pizza addiction. You’ve been banned for life from every Dominos in the tri-state area and just looking at a block of pepperoni can send you on a greasy downward spiral. But it’s cool, brah.Currently on your bookshelf: The Art of Pizza Making. (It was a gift!)Currently on your DVR: Aqua Teen Hunger Force.
DONATELLO
Donnie is the brains of the group. He's the smartest turtle by an underground mile.If your favorite Turtle is Donatello: You’re a nerd and proud of it. You're super smart, and you take your friends to museums because it will be "good for them." You put a roll of tape on perfectly good tortoise-shell spectacles just to increase your nerd aesthetic. Did I mention you were into thick-framed glasses way before the collective population of Brooklyn claimed them as its ironic eyewear of choice? You take pride in having volumes of information at the ready at all times, and can roll out digits of Pi like bullets from a machine gun, and get a jolt of pride when some random factoid you know can be useful in conversation. You’ve made it your mission to be the smartest guy on the internet, and you’re actually alarmingly close. You make Trivial Pursuit your constant bitch.Currently on your bookshelf: Ulysses, because you wan’t to be that guy who says he understood Ulysses, and how it was actually quite the leisurely read.Currently on your DVR: Cosmos. You already know everything and more about astronomy, but you watch it the same way regular folks sometimes zone out to old Everybody Loves Raymond episodes they've seen a dozen times.
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The big screen reboot of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles has been delayed by several months. Director Jonathan Liebesman's new vision of the crime-fighting reptile gang was set to hit cinemas in June, 2014 but has now been pushed back until August (14).
The decision comes just weeks after the film's star Megan Fox - who plays journalist April O'Neil - announced she is pregnant with her second child.
The movie also stars Will Arnett, Whoopi Goldberg and Alan Ritchson.

April O'Neil: Is that you? Has the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle leading lady lost her iconic yellow jumpsuit under the guidance of producer Michael Bay and Wrath of the Titans director Jonathan Liebesman. It sure looks that way thanks to this new photo of Megan Fox's version of O'Neil popped up on the Internet Monday. Turtle fans are (expectedly) losing their ever-loving s**t over the change.
For many TMNT-obsessed fans, April O'Neil is a bit of a vessel for the creepy fetishization of nerd wet dreams made up of yellow jumpsuits. I mean, just look at the first page of search results for "April O'Neil" on Google. The obsession with April is not for the work that she does as a companion and friend of the turtles, but rather for her body. Gee wilikers — a lady being objectified by nerd culture? A comic book lady with little to add outside of her exaggerated and unrealistic body/looks? Wow, truly something you don't see every day!
Except, har har har, just kidding! Comic book heroines are constantly touted as sex objects for the men who love ladies, but not lady minds. Megan Fox is certainly no stranger to such territory: homegirl is constantly objectified by Hollywood and seems to almost exclusively be cast in roles that do just that. Just look at her track record with the film's producer. We all know how well that went. It's actually surprising the two decided to work together again.
It's a fairly easy argument to make that O'Neil's portrayal in the TMNT series' many iterations has never really been about what she brings to the table. As long as she's in a yellow jumpsuit, her duties are inconsequential. O'Neil has been given the completely illogical and not-at-all-connected jobs of journalist (in the animated series), warrior (yeah thanks for that, Archie Comics), and computer programmer (in the original comic). Every time someone takes the lead on April O'Neil, her personality traits are completely disregarded; she's not supposed to have a specific skillset that is exclusive to her, she is merely a vessel.
And that's not even taking into consideration in the Mirage Comics/original version of her, where the big twist revealed O'Neil's origins to be that of a pen drawing brought to life. Now, if that doesn't prove to you that April O'Neil has long been a victim of the comic book world's misogynistic lady problem, I don't know what will. O'Neil is a body, nothing more. No wonder Bay hired Hollywood's current go-to body for the role. We just hope he decides to treat O'Neil like a real, human woman instead of a figment of nerd sexual fantasies. Getting rid of that yellow jumpsuit certainly gives us hope.
We, for one, are glad that O'Neil has shed that goddamned yellow jumpsuit in favor or something more practical and less fetishized — perhaps we'll finally get to meet the real April O'Neil and Fox will have an opportunity to escape the typecasting.
What do you think of April O'Neil's lack of a yellow jumpsuit? Let us know in the comments!
Follow Alicia on Twitter @alicialutes
More:Megan Fox as April O'Neil: Is This Our Feminist Hero?Michael Bay Tells 'Turtle' Fans to Chill OutMichael Bay's 'Ninja Turtles' Casts Leonardo, Donatello, Michaelangelo
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Sure, Will Arnett would probably make a great villain, since we all know he's pretty great at being bad (we're looking at you, Devon Banks), but let's be serious: that man was born with the perfect vocal aptitude to play a giant rat guru/ninja master. So we were intrigued to learn that Arnett has been cast in the upcoming Michael Bay/Paramount Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles remake — the truncatingly titled Ninja Turtles. Unfortunately for us, though, Arnett's exact role is still top-secret information, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
RELATED: Will Arnett Jumping Ship Before 'Up All Night' Cancellation
The film, directed by Jonathan Liebesman, will be shot as a live-action/CG hybrid. Megan Fox stars as turtle-friend and human April O'Neil, while Pete Ploszek, Jeremy Howard, Noel Fisher, and The Hunger Games: Catching Fire's Alan Ritchson will play the rambuctious teenaged turtles with a taste for the 'za (that's pizza for all you non-teen-boys out there). Hollywood.com has reached out to a rep for Arnett for comment on the casting, but did not hear back at the time of publication.
RELATED: 'Ninja Turtles' Casts Its Four Teenaged Reptiles
Of the major roles left to cast, there are three: sensei/master rat Splinter, big baddie Shredder, and human buddy Casey. Since it's been reported that Arnett will not play Casey, it seems obvious that he'll play one of the other two. We could probably learn to live with an Arnett-as-Shredder casting, but c'mon: that man should definitely be voicing a rat.
What do you think of this latest casting development? Sound off in the comments!
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[Photo Credit: TBD]
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A square-jawed, chisel-faced, blond-locked twenty/thirtysomething actor who isn't Sam Claflin, Ryan Kwanten, Garrett Hedlund, Taylor Kitsch, Chris Hemsworth, or Armie Hammer has just been cast as Raphael in the Michael Bay-produced Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (titled, simply, Ninja Turtles). I know, even after naming all of those actors, there are still dozens more who it could be. So no more games: the actor in question is Alan Ritchson, who'll also be playing former District 1 tribute turned Quarter Quell contender Gloss in November's The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. Ritchson's best-known non-Hunger Games role was as Aquaman on Smallville. What a shock that he was on The CW.
Megan Fox to Play April, Possibly Ruin Childhoods, in ‘Ninja Turtles’
To inhabit Raphael, Ritchson will give an all motion-capture performance, but he'll be interacting with a very much flesh-and-blood Megan Fox as April (with hopefully an emphasis on the flesh). He'll be directed by Jonathan Liebesman, whose previous efforts include helming Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning, Battle: Los Angeles, and Wrath of the Titans. So, yes, quality is guaranteed.
Do you know who Alan Ritchson is, and can you tell him apart from any of the young Stepford males currently jockeying for roles in Hollywood?
Follow Christian Blauvelt on Twitter @Ctblauvelt
[Photo Credit: The CW]
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The Transformers director announced in March (12) that he had begun working on a new film featuring the martial arts-loving crimefighters and production was due to begin this summer (12).
But editors at The Hollywood Reporter claim the preparations have been shut down indefinitely by Paramount Pictures executives. Insiders tell the publication they have also pushed back plans to release the film in December next year (13) to May, 2014.
Paramount representatives have yet to comment on the reports.
Wrath of the Titans filmmaker Jonathan Liebesman is due to direct the new Turtles movie, with Bay as producer.

Over the course of the past few days, some mysterious rumors have materialized about the already controversial topic of producer Michael Bay's developing Ninja Turtles movie. It appears that hip-hop artist Kid Cudi will be somehow involved with the project. Cudi alluded to involvement in Ninja Turtles on his Tumblr, posting a piece of original artwork from the film's production, and citing a relationship with Ninja Turtles producers Andrew Form and Brad Fuller, concluding with a "Hint hint mane," (which, of course, makes it official). The Turtle portrait certainly looks like it could have come from outer space.
Furthermore, Fuller himself Tweeted the following message yesterday: "Kid Cudi In 'Ninja Turtles'? Rapper Drops Hints About Potential Involvement In Michael Bay's Remake," linking to this article from HuffPo. While it does look like Cudi is involved with the pic, it's still unclear how he is involved. Will he be acting? Providing original music? Turtle-wrangling?
Although Cudi is first and foremost a music artist, he has some acting experience. He starred as Domingo Brown throughout the HBO series How to Make It in America. Could Cudi be taking on a major role — perhaps one of the Turtles themselves? If so, which would suit him best? The diplomatic Leonardo? The rebellious Raphael? The free-spirited Michelangelo? The intellectual Donatello?
And if Cudi is on board solely as a soundtrack contributor, what might his hip hop rendition of "Heroes in a Half-Shell" sound like? Probably not this...
More:
TMNT: Why Michael Bay Should Make Crazy Changes
Michael Bay to Ninja Turtles Fans: Chill Out!
Wrath of the Titans Director Jonathan Liebesman May Helm New Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
[HuffPo]

Much like its Greek mythological source material Wrath of the Titans is light on dramatic characterization sticking to blunt moral lessons and fantastical battles to tell its epic tale. That's perfectly acceptable for its 100 minute run time in which director Jonathan Liebesman (Battle: Los Angeles) unleashes an eclectic hoard of monsters upon his gruff demigod hero Perseus. The creature design is jagged gnarly and exaggerated not unlike a twelve-year-old's sugar high-induced crayon creations — which is perfect as Wrath is tailor made to entertain and enamor that slice of the population.
Clash of the Titans star Sam Worthington once again slips on the sandals to take on a not-quite-based-on-a-myth adventure a mission that pits Perseus against the greatest force in the universe: Kronos formally-incarcerated father of the Gods. A few years after his last adventure Perseus is grieving for his deceased wife and caring for their lone son but a visit from Zeus (Liam Neeson) alerts the warrior to a task even more urgent than his current seabass fishing gig. Irked that the whole Kraken thing didn't work out Hades (Ralph Fiennes) with the help of Zeus' disaffected son Ares (Edgar Ramirez) is preparing to unleash Kronos — and only Perseus has the required machismo to stop him. But Perseus enjoys the simple life and brushes off Zeus forcing the head deity to take matters into his own hands…just as Hades and Ares planned. The diabolical duo capture Zeus and having no one else to turn to Perseus proceeds into battle.
The actual reasoning for all the goings on in Wrath of the Titans tend to drift into the mystical realm of convolution but the ensemble and Liebesman's visual visceral directing techniques keep the messy script speeding along. As soon as one starts wondering why Perseus would ever need to hook up with battle-ready Andromeda (Rosamund Pike) or Poseiden's navigator son Agenor (Toby Kebbell) Liebesman and writers Dan Mazeu and David Johnson throw in another bombastic set piece another three-headed four-armed 10 000-fanged monstrosity on screen. Perseus' journey pits him against a fire-breathing Chimera a set of Cyclopses a shifting labyrinth (complete with Minotaur) and all the dangers that come with Hell itself. The sequences have all the suspense of an action figure sandbox brawl but on a towering IMAX screen they're geeky fun. If only the filler material was a bit more logical and interesting the final product would be the slightest bit memorable.
Liebesman reaps the best performances he possibly can from Wrath's silly formula Worthington again proves himself a charismatic underrated leading man. As the main trio of Gods Neeson Fiennes and Ramirez completely acknowledge how goofy shooting lightning bolts out of their hands must look on screen but they own it with campy fun tones. But the film's overwhelming CG spectacle suffocates the glimmer of great acting opting for slice-and-dice battle scenes over ridiculous (and fun) epic speak nonsense. If a movie has Liam Neeson as the top God it shouldn't chain him up in molten lava shackles for a majority of the time.
Wrath of the Titans is a non-offensive superhero movie treatment of classic heroes that feels more like an exercise in 3D monster modeling than filmmaking. Its 3D makeover never helps the creatures or Perseus pop turning Wrath into an even muddier affair than the single-planed alternative (although unlike Clash of the Titans you won't have 3D shaky-cam blur burned directly into your retinas). The movie reaches for that child sense of wonderment but instead cranks out a picture that may not even hold a child's attention.
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